At the TOUR-Transalp and also at many marathons, the same picture often presents itself at the finish line: shortly after the finish line, many cyclists tear their shoes off their troubled feet, or at least undo the straps and buckles of their foot cages. Some have to take a forced break during the race or training because they can no longer stand the burning sensation in the soles of their feet or because every additional pedal rotation feels like stepping on a pincushion.
Almost all road cyclists - not just extreme athletes or long-distance triathletes - are familiar with painful or numb feet. This may come as no surprise when you look at a modern racing shoe with a clipless pedal system: The soles, often made of carbon fibre, are rigid and prevent the soles of the feet from flexing or moving. The lasts are usually cut to fit snugly and can be pulled millimetre-tight around the instep using a variety of strap, ratchet or knob systems. Then there is the fixation on the pedal: most system pedals offer a certain degree of lateral freedom of movement. Nevertheless, feet, shoes and pedals are coupled to form a community in which they do not always form a good team. "In unfavourable cases, the binding can fix misalignments, for example in the foot or leg axis," says orthopaedist and TOUR expert Dr Christian Merkl. This can lead to orthopaedic complaints, as he knows from his own experience: he once had to prematurely end his first ride with clipless pedals in pain, as the system around the foot was obviously not yet harmonised.
You can read how to avoid aching feet in the detailed article, which you can find below as a PDF download.
Downloads:
download
